Last



Patented July 8, 1924.

TES

istat JAMES CAVANAGH, 0F BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIG-NO'B T0 UNITED SHOE MA.-

' CHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATEK-SON, NEW JERSEY, A. CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

LAST.

Application filed April 17, 1919. Serial No. 290,674.

To all whom t may concer/n:

Be it known that I, JAMES! CAVANAGH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston,`in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Lasts, ofV which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in'the several figures.

rThis invention relates to boot and shoe lasts and the invention is herein illustrated as embodied in a separable last comprising fore and heel parts relatively movable to collapse the last.

In the manufacture of shoes by machinery it is customary to employ different kinds of lasts according to the particular method of manufacture employed. For instance, when the method involves attaching the heels by inside nailing, the lasts' employed usually.

have removable heel parts, or are bodily removed for the purposeand when the method involves 'outside heel nailing, it is customary to employ lasts the fore and heel partsof which are not separated in use, but have a hinged or swinging connection to permit easy. removal of vthe last 'when desired. In either case, it may be desirable to vary the length of the lasts for reasons so well known as lto require no detailed ex` planation herein.

An important feature of my invention is .a last having fore andfheel partsv provided with separable hinged, extensible connections, whereby it can be employed in the manufacture of shoes according to either of the above-mentioned methods, and can be extendedwhile in the shoe to properly stretch the upper over the forepart, the

particularadvantage of this last beingthat a single line of lasts instead of a' plurality will serve for the different methods.

The illustrated construction embodies fore and heel' partsof the last provided with an adjustable hinge, by which I meanaV hinge the-pivot of which can be set at different distances from the toe of the forepart, whereby the total or bodily length of the last may be increased.

In the particular embodiment the invention illustra-ted, thefore heel parte are so connected that the length of the last may be gradually increased by a rocking or oscillating movement ofa tool.

These and other features of the invention comprising certain arrangements and combinations of parts will be explained inthe following specification and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, which show a preferred embodiment of my invention,

Fig.' 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of the last in its collapsed or shortened condition;

Fig. 2 is a similar view illustrating the operation of shifting the connections in one of the steps Vperformed for eecting a lengthening of the last; and

Fig. 3 is a similar view illustrating a further step in the lengthening of the last.

The fore part 12 and heel part 13 are of any suitable last form, each having a recess to contain the connections. Mounted on a pivot pin 14 extending transversely of the recess in forepart 12 is a bell-crank lever latch comprising a finger-operated portion 15 and a pawl or latch portion 16. A bar 17 havinga series of notches 18 in its upper surface or edge is slidingly mounted in a recess or socket 19 in the forepart 12, said bar having a pin 20 extending laterally from one or both sides thereof. A locking plate 21 which forms an adjusting locking lever is pivotally mounted on a pin 22 extending transversely of the re- Cess in heel part 13, said plate having a forked arm 23 engaging the pin or pins 2O of bar 17. Said plate is also formed with a vsubstantially vertical socket 24 having a `hole 25 at its inner end (see dotted lines,

Fig. 2). A bolt 26 mounted in a recess in the'lheel part and normally ejected by a spring 27 is adapted to engage the hole 25 to lock the plate 21 in the position indicated in Fig. 1.

Any suitable tool 28 as for example, a jack pin, having a reduced tip portion 29 adapted to- 'pass through the hole 25 of socket 24C may be employed tounlock `the plate21, as'indicated by comparing Figs. 1 and 2. When such tool is inserted in the socket far enough to pressthe bolt 26 into its socket so asf t9 plea-fthe lower en@ of the socket, 24, such tool may then be employed to rock or oscillate the plate 21 on its pivot 22.

A latch arm `30, pivoted at'31 tothe heel part 13, is formed with a series of notches 32 in its lower surface or edge, either one of said notches being adapted to engage a small pin 33 extending transversely of the recess in the forepart 12. The latch 30 may be manually lifted out of engagement with the pin 33 and to facilitate such operation it is preferably provided with a finger piece 34.

In operation, assuming that the last ism its shortened condition indicated in Fig. 1 and is to be lengthened or extended, the operator inserts the tool 28 in the rsocket 24 far Venough to cause the tip 29 to release the'bolt 26 from the hole or keeper 25. He then operates the tool to swing the plate 21 to or toward the position indicated in Fig. 2, thereby drawing the bar 17 rearwardly so that, although the heel'part is not yet shifted relatively to the forepart, yet the pivot pin 20, which co-acts with the yoke or fork23 to form a hinge, is shifted to a point farther from the secant face ofthe forepart. The latch member 15, 16 of course readily yields automatically to permit this withdrawal or rearward movement of the bar 17 and the hinge pintle 20. Upon then returning or actuating the tool 28 in the reverse direction so as to carry the plate 21 to the Fig. 3 position, the bar 17 remains in its partially withdra-wn position so that the members 20, 23 will act as a fulcrum While the plate 21 and the parts carried thereby are moved from thc Fig. 2 position tothe Fig. 3 position, the latch 30 readily moving over the pin 33 to the position shown in said Fig. 3. By continuing these operations 'of rocking the plate 21, the last may be extended to any length permitted by the series of notches 18 `in the bar 17 and 32 in the latch memberv 30. Of course, in practice these notches may be smaller ones thanillustrate'din the drawings to permit ner adjustments.

I do not illustrate springs lfor holding the latch member 15', 16 and thek latch member 30 in engaged positions, but it will be readily understood that any suitably mounted springs may be employedr for such purpose.

By depressing the bolt 26 to release the pivotally mounted member 21, the heel part may be extended relatively to theV forepart by pressing down upon the forep'a-rt when the last is in an inverted positiony v'from that' shown in the drawings, the parts then being held in their new position byy thek engagement of the toe or latch 16 with the'not'ched bar 17. Then `when the forepart -isl'swung or returned to itsiposition for iuse, the'other latch member `30 automatically moves into vproper locking positiomth'e bolt 126`2automat-` ical'lyretilrlngto position torlo'ck `the plate `may be operated like an ordinaryhinged last by simply disengaging the upper latch 30 from its pin 33, and this may be done regardless of whether the location of the hinge pintle is nearer to or farther from the 'secant face of the forepart. y

The parts of the last are readily separable while in the shoe by simply pulling them apart, the latch member 3() then riding over the pin 33 and the bar 17 pulling directly out from the socket in the forepart.

It will now be understood that I have provided a last which is eXtensible inwhatlmay be called a straight line, the heel Vpart being bodily eXtensible while the sole faces of `the two parts remain in alinement, that is, without shifting one part angularly relatively to the other part. Also, the members are Acapable of use as a hinged last and are quickly separable, and the last may be employed on the usual jack support entering the socket 24.

I do not limit myself to the use of the-device as a last for the manufacture of boots or shoes, since a similarly constructed device may be employed either for the repairing of boots or shoes or as a form for keeping` a shoe in shape.

Having now described my invention in a preferred embodiment thereof, what I claim 1. A last comprising fore and heel parts having longitudinally adjust-able connections, whereby the operative length of the last 'may be substantially varied, .constructed and arranged to `hold the last against collapse, said connections being readily separable in the use of the last. y

2. A last comprising fore and heel parts having Vseparable and longitudinally adjustable connections, said connectionsy comprising strut membersconstructed and arranged to permit free removal of the heel part yor to hold the heel part separa-ted from the forepart in any desired position.

3. A last comprising fore and heel parts provided with hinged, extensible connections, arranged to support the parts positively under compressive stresses tending to collapse the last, said connections being readily separable in the use -of the llast.

4. In a last having separate fore and Aheel parts, va plurality' of members one above-another extending from one toV the other Tof said parts, and engaging them both `at p'oiintsf having a substantial'vertical separation, and Imeans. for longitudinally adjusting said members to vary substantially the length of the last as a whole.

5. A last comprising fore and heel parts having a hinge connection, the length of which is adjustable over a substantial range, and a locking member constructed and arranged to hold the last in longitudinally extended position throughout the range of adjustment.

6. A last comprising a forepart having a hinge member adjustable relatively thereto over a substantial range to vary the size of the last, a heel part having a cooperating hinge member, and a locking member similarly adjustable to hold the last in operative position throughout the adjustment.

7. A last comprising a forepart having a notched bar adjustable therein, said bar having a hinge member at its outer end, a heel part having a co-operating hinge member, and a latch carried by the forepart t0 engage the notches of said bar.

8. A last comprising a forepart having a notched bar adjustable therein and a latch to co-operate with the notches thereof, said bar having a hinge member, and a heel part having a co-operating hinge member, means being provided to actuate said co-operating member of the heel part to draw said bar out from the forepart.

9. A last comprising a forepart having a notched bar provided with a pin at its outer end, a latch to engage the notches of said bar, a heel part having a pivoted plate provided with a fork engaging the pin of said notched bar, said plate having a socket for a tool to enable said plate to be rocked on the pivot, and means for locking said plate against oscillation.

10. A last comprising a orepart having a notched bar provided with a pin at its outer end, a latch to engage the notches of said bar, a heel part having a pivoted plate provided with a fork engaging the pin of said notched bar, said plate having a socket for a tool to enable said plate to be rocked on the pivot, and means for locking said i plate against oscillation, said locking means comprising a spring bolt mounted in the heel part and a keeper for said bolt carried by the hinged plate.

11. A last comprising fore and heel parts having hinged connections constructed and arranged to co-operate to prevent relative rotation of said parts when in adjusted position, said connections being adjustable to vary the eiiective length of the last over a substantial range.

12. A last having freely separable fore and heel parts and having adjustable means for preventing relative approach beyond a desired point, constructed and arranged to hold the parts against collapsing movement.

13. A last comprising fore and heel parts having two connecting devices each Jforming an abutment upon which the parts can be rocked to permit extension of the other.

14E. A last comprising :tore and heel parts having extension mechanism consisting of a plurality of alternately acting ratchet devices.

15. A last comprising fore and heel parts, a plurality of notched members extending between said parts, means for co-acting with the notches of said members to hold the last parts in extended positions, and means for shifting said notched members longitudinally.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

JAMES CAVANAGH. 

